Q: Are there any good chemical treatments to speed up and/or assist with the composting of dried leaves?

A: Sure, add nitrogen of some form to the pile.

My rule of thumb is 1 cup of 10-10-10 per pile with piles averaging three feet high and four feet wide. Stir the fertilizer in a bit and spray the leaves lightly with water as you stir.

Bacteria and fungi will have a great time eating the leaves.

Related Articles:

• Azalea and Rhododendron – Root Rot (Wilting) Q: I moved into my house in an older neighborhood in 1996....
• Chinquapin – Care Q: I purchased four ‘Georgiana’ chinquapin trees from a nursery in south...
• Crapemyrtle – Lichens Q: My parents have lost two of three crapemyrtles and the third...
• Science Project – Effects of Nitrogen Q: I am doing a Science Fair Project on, ‘How does the...

Tags For This Article: fertilizing